AN ACT to provide an appropriation for defraying the expenses of the industrial commission and the agencies under its control; to create and enact a new section to chapter 6-09 and a new subdivision to subsection 2 of section 38-08-04.5 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to a rail revolving loan fund and uses of the abandoned oil and gas well plugging and site reclamation fund; to amend and reenact subsection 7 of section 6-08.1-02 and sections 6-09-35, 6-09-46.2, 6-09.7-05, 6-09.14-04, and 49-17.1-02.1, subsection 1 of section 54-17-40, and subdivision a of subsection 4 of section 54-17.7-04 of the North Dakota Century Code, and section 15 of chapter 14 of the 2023 Session Laws, relating to confidential and exempt records of the Bank of North Dakota, the rebuilders loan program, loan guarantees through the strategic investment and improvements fund, interest rate buydown limits for the partnership in assisting community expansion fund, department of transportation review and approval of rail projects, uses of the housing incentive fund, North Dakota pipeline borrowing authority, and a salt cavern underground energy storage research project; to repeal section 3 of Senate Bill No. 2188, as approved by the sixty-ninth legislative assembly, relating to a transfer from the strategic investment and improvements fund to the clean sustainable energy fund; to provide a deficiency appropriation; to provide for a transfer; to provide an exemption; to provide for a legislative management study; to provide for a legislative management report; to provide for a report; to provide an effective date; and to declare an emergency.
SB2014 is the Industrial Commission and related agencies’ biennial appropriations bill for the 2025-27 biennium. It funds the Industrial Commission, Bank of North Dakota, Housing Finance Agency, Department of Mineral Resources, and Mill and Elevator Association, while also setting aside one-time funding for items such as electricity grid resiliency, lignite litigation, oil and gas litigation, rare earth elements research, mineral analysis, and abandoned well work. The bill also includes a deficiency appropriation for a hydrogen energy research invoice and declares that section an emergency measure.
Beyond appropriations, the bill makes a wide set of policy and fund-management changes. It creates a rail revolving loan fund for loans to counties, cities, railroads, and other freight rail users, and it directs the Department of Transportation to review and approve rail projects financed through that fund. It expands or clarifies several Bank of North Dakota and Industrial Commission authorities, including confidentiality rules for certain Bank records, the rebuilders loan program, the guarantee reserve fund cap, and interest rate buydown limits under the partnership in assisting community expansion fund. It also changes the housing incentive fund structure, authorizes transfers from the strategic investment and improvements fund and Bank profits, and modifies pipeline borrowing authority and underground energy storage research provisions.
The bill’s fiscal impact is broad. It appropriates roughly $439.3 million in total funds for the Industrial Commission and agencies under its control, including about $34.7 million from the general fund, and it authorizes major transfers from the Bank of North Dakota’s earnings and the strategic investment and improvements fund. It also directs transfers into the housing incentive fund, oil and gas research fund, and rail revolving loan fund, and it allows continued use of certain unexpended prior appropriations. In addition, it creates reporting requirements to the Legislative Management and future appropriations committees on several studies and projects, including homelessness, western North Dakota economic development, and salt cavern energy storage.
The overall sentiment reflected in the bill’s passage is supportive and budget-focused, with strong bipartisan approval in both chambers. The final votes were 42-3 in the Senate and 74-15 in the House, indicating broad agreement on the need to fund the agencies and associated initiatives. The bill appears to have been treated as a major omnibus appropriations and economic development measure rather than a narrowly contested policy bill.
The main points of contention are likely tied to the bill’s large transfers and targeted spending priorities. Potentially controversial items include the $140 million transfer from Bank of North Dakota profits to the general fund, the $60 million transfer to economic development programs, the $25 million transfer to the housing incentive fund, and the use of the strategic investment and improvements fund for litigation, studies, and energy-related projects. Other notable issues include the new rail loan program, the expanded guarantee reserve fund cap, and the specific earmarks for projects such as the Theodore Roosevelt presidential library line-of-credit buydown and Native American homelessness liaison funding.
SB2014 substantially revises North Dakota law governing the Industrial Commission, Bank of North Dakota, housing finance, rail infrastructure financing, oil and gas research, and related state funds. It creates a new rail revolving loan fund in chapter 6-09, amends confidentiality and exempt-record provisions for Bank of North Dakota records, expands the rebuilders loan program, increases the strategic investment and improvements fund cap for the guarantee reserve fund effective July 1, 2027, and changes the housing incentive fund from a revolving fund at the Bank to a special fund in the state treasury administered by the Housing Finance Agency. The bill also modifies rail project review authority, pipeline borrowing authority, and the uses of the abandoned oil and gas well plugging and site reclamation fund, while authorizing multiple transfers and continuing appropriations affecting state agencies, local governments, and borrowers seeking economic development, housing, rail, or energy-related financing.
The bill appears to have enjoyed broad legislative support, as shown by the strong final votes in both chambers and the absence of recorded committee opposition in the provided materials. Its contents suggest a consensus around funding core state agencies, supporting housing and economic development, and maintaining energy and mineral-sector programs. The measure combines appropriations with policy updates and targeted transfers, indicating it was viewed as a necessary omnibus budget and infrastructure bill rather than a highly divisive proposal.
The most likely areas of disagreement involve the size and destination of fund transfers and the use of state financial resources for targeted projects. Items that could draw scrutiny include the large transfer from Bank of North Dakota profits to the general fund, the transfer to economic development programs, the housing incentive fund transfer for homeless and housing programs, and the use of the strategic investment and improvements fund for litigation, feasibility studies, and energy research. The bill also contains project-specific provisions, such as support for the Theodore Roosevelt presidential library line of credit and a Native American homelessness liaison, which may have prompted debate over priorities, geographic distribution, and whether these expenditures should be one-time or ongoing commitments.